Secrets and Lies || Ryan x Dylan (radioheads)

One

Princeton, New Jersey thankfully wasn't too far from where Dylan called home. He definitely experienced a lot of hardships throughout college due to both external and internal issues, but now that he was back in New York with his mom, step-sister and cat for the summer, he felt more relaxed. Not even three days after graduating with his degree in Quantum Physics, he lay in his bed on his stomach, petting his cat, Schrödinger, with one hand and messing around with a music program with the other. It was almost midnight, and he was nowhere near being tired, so he thoughtlessly indulged his hobby.
He thought he would get at least a week to settle back in, but he realized just how mistaken he was when his phone started ringing loudly, causing him to jump out of his skin due to his workaholic trance. He turned onto his back to reach his phone and looked at the caller ID, answering almost immediately. "Hey, Laura, how's it goin'?" He casually greeted the woman, mostly since they spoke pretty often.

"Oh my god, Dylan, take your Do Not Disturb off, seriously! This is the third time I've called you and I texted you like five times before that." The blonde scolded him playfully, but he didn't laugh; instead, he rolled his eyes and replied nonchalantly.

"Look, if anyone needs to get in touch with me that badly they'll probably call three times anyway. B'sides, it ever cross your mind that I, like, might be asleep, maybe?" He sat up in bed after replying in his sassy tone, looking at the time on his laptop.

Laura scoffed at his response, chuckling afterwards. "Yeah, right. You and I both know you sleep at ungodly times."

"OK, well, you got me there. Why call me at midnight anyway? I'm kinda busy being not busy at all." He redirected their conversation, wanting to get back to his activities quickly.

     "Max and I are visiting. We're actually at Kellogg's Diner. You should come and hang out. It'll be fun, I promise." Laura reassured Dylan, already expecting his reaction to expose his anxiety.

     Dylan let out an annoyed sigh, groaning afterwards because of the implication that he would have to get out of bed. "You always say that, and I always believe you, but it's never true."

     After hearing the man's reluctance, Laura chose to reply with less attitude. "Okay, well, just do it for me?"

     "It's just you guys, right? No tricks? I swear I will shoot my straw wrapper straight into your eyeball if you're setting me up." The brunette stood up from his bed as he spoke, kicking off his pajama pants. "You're not saying anything, which scares me, but, ugh, fine. Hold your horses, I'm coming."

"Wear something pink. Really brings out your eyes."

Before Dylan could even comment on the strange suggestion, Laura had hung up. Shaking his head, he tossed his phone onto his bed and removed his shirt, then walking to his closet and pulling out some ripped light blue skinny jeans, as well as a thin bubblegum pink sweater. He got dressed quickly but not urgently, and then picked both his cat and his phone up, slipping on some white vans before exiting his bedroom. He put his phone in his pocket and then went to his step-sister's room, opening the door without knocking like usual.

     "Dude, how many times are you gonna barge in here?" She glared at him despite that innocent smile being on his face, reaching out and grabbing Schrödinger from him as he walked closer to her bed.

     "Ugh. You act like I'm gonna care if I walk in on you naked or something." Dylan rolled his eyes and put a hand on his hip. "Just watch him for me. Won't be gone long."

     Claire gave the feline head scratches while Dylan spoke, wearing a confused expression since this wasn't his usual behavior. "You actually have plans? With other people?" She teased him, which incited a typical response: he flipped her off. She smirked slightly.